Ohio Republican state Sen. Troy Balderson and Democrat Danny O’Connor, the Franklin County recorder, will face off in the August special election to fill former GOP Rep. Pat Tiberi’s seat in the 12th District.
Balderson won the GOP primary with 29 percent of the vote, finishing narrowly ahead of Liberty Township Trustee Melanie Leneghan, who had 28 percent. The fight between them had become a traditional Republican proxy war.
West Virginia state Del. Carol Miller won the Republican nomination for the open 3rd District on Tuesday night.
She took 24 percent of the vote in a seven-way GOP field and will face Democratic state Sen. Richard Ojeda in November. Her nearest challenger, fellow state Del. Rupie Phillips, had 20 percent.
North Carolina Rep. Robert Pittenger is the first incumbent of 2018 to lose, falling to former pastor Mark Harris in Tuesday’s 9th District Republican primary.
Harris defeated Pittenger 48.5 percent to 46 percent, reversing the result from two years ago when the latter won by just 134 votes in a recount.
West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey has won the Republican nomination to take on Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin III in November in what’s likely to be one of the most closely watched races in the country.
He took 35 percent of the vote in a six-way GOP primary field, besting Rep. Evan Jenkins and former Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship who finished with 29 percent and 20 percent, respectively.
Indiana state Rep. Jim Baird won the Republican nomination for the 4th District on Tuesday, defeating two opponents who outraised and outspent him.
With 98 percent of precincts reporting, Baird had 36 percent of the vote to 30 percent for businessman Steve Braun and 15 percent for former gubernatorial aide Diego Morales, according to The Associated Press.
Ohio Rep. James B. Renacci won the Republican nomination for Senate on Tuesday night to take on Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown in November.
He finished first in the five-candidate field with 47 percent of the vote, ahead of Cleveland businessman Mike Gibbons, his closest challenger, who took 34 percent.
Businessman and former state Rep. Mike Braun won the Republican nod for Senate in Indiana on Tuesday. He’ll take on Democratic incumbent Joe Donnelly in one of the most competitive races in the country.
Outspending his opponents, Braun defeated Reps. Todd Rokita and Luke Messer to win the nomination. With 99 percent of precincts reporting, Braun had 41 percent of the vote to 30 percent for Messer and 29 percent for Rokita, according to The Associated Press.
Greg Pence, the eldest brother of Vice President Mike Pence, won the Republican nomination in Indiana’s 6th District on Tuesday night, which means he’s almost certainly coming to Congress next year.
With 99 percent of precincts reporting, Pence had 65 percent of the vote, according to The Associated Press. His nearest challenger, entrepreneur Jonathan Lamb, took 24 percent.
POINT PLEASANT, W.Va. — Republicans have a woman problem, and they know it.
While the party is recruiting female candidates, many say that’s not enough. The next step, operatives suggest, needs to be helping the women through GOP primaries.
Tuesday marks the first big primary day of 2018. Voters go to the polls in Indiana, Ohio, West Virginia and North Carolina.
Most of the exciting action is on the Republican side. In all of those states (except for North Carolina), Democratic senators are trying to hold on to seats in territory President Donald Trump won in 2016, which means the GOP primaries are high-stakes contests. (More on that below.)
BLUEFIELD, W.Va. — From the outside, it’s easy to dismiss the candidacy of former Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship.
The low-budget ads. The racist comments. The fact that he served a year in prison in connection with a deadly mine explosion and is still on probation.
BLUEFIELD, W.Va. — Former Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship insists his new ad, in which he attacks Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell for growing rich from his “China family,” is not racist.
But in doing so, the West Virginia Republican Senate candidate may have furthered concerns of his own prejudices.
Welcome to At the Races! You can keep track of House and Senate races with this weekly newsletter by subscribing here. We want to hear what you think. Email us at attheraces@cqrollcall.com with your questions, tips or candidate sightings. — Simone Pathé and Bridget Bowman
Recent Tennessee transplant Trey Hollingsworth faced widespread attacks in 2016 from Republicans and Democrats, who accused him of trying to buy an Indiana congressional seat.
But he withstood those charges, winning a contested GOP primary and then the general election by double digits in the 9th District. He’s now the 12th wealthiest lawmaker in Washington, according to Roll Call’s “Wealth of Congress” analysis.
Winning for Women Inc., a new group formed to boost Republican female candidates, is making its first independent expenditure of the 2018 cycle for a West Virginia woman facing a competitive congressional primary next week.
Winning for Women is spending five figures on a digital spot supporting state Del. Carol Miller, who is running for the GOP nomination in West Virginia’s 3rd District. Current GOP Rep. Evan Jenkins is running for Senate.
Montana State Auditor Matt Rosendale’s first TV ad in the GOP Senate primary is airing Friday.
The ad features Rosendale’s wife giving him a haircut in their kitchen. The message? He’s cheap.
Welcome to At the Races! You can keep track of House and Senate races with this weekly newsletter by subscribing here. We want to hear what you think. Email us at attheraces@cqrollcall.com with your questions, tips or candidate sightings. — Simone Pathé and Bridget Bowman
WARSAW, Ind. — Jackie Walorski made the rounds at the Kosciusko County fish fry earlier this month like a political pro.
She took the time to sit down with veterans enjoying their fish, and she seemed to hug or clasp hands with everyone she encountered at this biannual Republican fundraiser.
Save for later